Centripetal and Centrifugal Forces:
Two Harmonious Directions
in Life and Yoga

There is a principle in
physics that is also applicable to human beings, and which is extremely
useful to understand and put into practical use. That is, there are two
forces at play; one is moving outward, while the other is moving inward.
To have only one, without the other, can lead to being out of balance,
to either being lost in the world or to living a life of escapism. To
fully experience them both, and to have them in a harmonious balance is
a very high way of living in Yoga.

Two
Forces in Physics

Two
Directions for People

There
are two forces at play with a satellite in orbit or a rock swung
in a circle on the end of a string. One force would have the
satellite or rock continue its journey away from the center;
this is the centrifugal force. The other force pulls the object
inward through gravity or the strength of the string; this is
the centripetal force. To have the two forces in balance is what
allows the satellite to stay in its orbit and the rock in its
circuitous arc.

There
are also two forces at play with human beings. One force is that
of consciousness ever moving outward, manifesting through
intellect, ego, mind, senses, and actions. The other force is
that inner draw or pull for all of these to recede, so that the
consciousness might rest in its own true nature, which is called
Self-Realization. To have the highest inner Realization while
engaging in the world is the highest goal.

Receding rather than
Traveling

In spiritual life and the
path of enlightenment, it is not that there is a discrete "I"
as a collection of mental and emotional traits who travels from here to
there, from this realm to that realm, and on to the next realm. Rather,
our consciousness, soul, spirit, or whatever else you want to call it
manifests outward through individuation, intellect, ego, mind, and
sensory-motor instruments so that we may engage the external world.
Then, on the return journey, all of these recede back into one another.
The sensory-motor instruments, mind, ego and intellect all recede back
into that from which they originally emerged.

In this way latent
impressions manifest as dreams or unconscious mental process, and then
spring forth into actions in the world. After the actions or the dreams
have played out, those images all recede back into the latent bed of the
unconscious mind from which they had emerged. So too, when we turn
inward from the actions of the world, withdraw the senses, allow the
mind to recede into rest, it is a process of receding rather than
a process of a discrete "I" taking a journey.

In both the processes of
being and acting in the world and the processes of dreaming, there are
two underlying processes. One is the expansion or manifesting outward,
and the other is that of receding. Ornaments manifest out of gold,
though the gold does not travel anywhere. Pots manifests out of clay,
though the clay does not travel anywhere. Ornaments may recede back into
being only a piece of gold, though the gold did not travel anywhere.
Pots may recede back into being only a lump of clay, though the clay did
not travel anywhere. So too, we manifest outward through individuation,
intellect, ego, mind, and sensory-motor instruments, though the deepest
being who we are does not travel anywhere. So too, the sensory-motor
instruments, mind, ego, intellect, and individuation recede back into
our true essence, though that essence did not travel anywhere.

Outward and inward,
manifesting and receding; those are the two directions, like the
centrifugal and centripetal forces, while never is there any traveling
of the innermost essence.

Two Forces in Yoga,
Vedanta and Tantra

These two forces
(centripetal and centrifugal) are contained in virtually all of the
conceptual systems of meditation and contemplation, including the three
streams of Yoga, Vedanta and Tantra (see the article on the Three Streams).

Sankhya-Yoga: In
Sankhya, which is the foundation for Yoga, there is Purusha,
consciousness, along with the many manifestations of Prakriti, the
subltest "matter." (See Sankhya)

Vedanta: In
Vedanta, there is the Atman, the individual Self and Brahman, the
absolute reality, along with the appearances of sheaths manifesting
out of Maya, the illusion or unreality. (See Sheaths)

Tantra: In
Tantra, there is Shiva, the latent, formless masculine essence, along
with Shakti, the beautiful, creative feminine force that plays its way
into manifestation. (See Shiva-Shakti)

While each of these three
have their own perspective, the seeker of Self-Realization will see how
they work together, or play together, and that in all of them, there are
two forces in action; one is outer, centripetal, and the other is inner,
centrifugal. This is one of the ways in which the three streams of Yoga,
Vedanta and Tantra are companions on the journey to Self-Realization.

A satellite
in a geostationary orbit (remaining over one location on the
Earth) is held in place because of the perfect balance
between gravity (centripetal force) and its inertia
(centrifugal force). Imagine that the satellite stopped its
forward motion of about 17,000 miles per hour. The satellite
would immediately start falling toward Earth at a very fast
speed.

Imagine for a moment a human
stopping his or her outward momentum into the external
world, as well as ceasing motion of awareness "outward" into
the stuff of the mind and body. Instantly, she or he would
move "inward" towards the center of consciousness, the true
Self, or whatever you wish to call that. This is one way of
viewing the Yoga process of surrender. It is not a matter of
defining to whom or what you surrender, but the letting go
process itself.

Thus, Yoga Sutras
1.2-1.3 describes
Yoga as a process of setting aside or letting go, etc. (nirodhah),
which results in the seer or witness resting in its own true
nature. This is one way of explaining the meaning of the
phrase Self-Realization and the word Yoga.

Don't remove the Inner,
Centripetal force

There is somewhat subtle
point about rocks on a string and the journey of humans. Once this point
is understood, it is extremely practical in daily life and the seeking
of Self-Realization.

First, the physics part.
If you are swinging a rock on a string and the string breaks, the rock
flies away. Most of us would say that this flying away is caused by the
centrifugal force, the outward pull. However, the Newtonian physicists
explain that it is not the outward pull that does this, but instead, it
is the cessation or removal of the centripetal
force, the release of the inner pull that allows the rock to fly
outward. They explain this in the context of Newton's laws of motion. If
you are curious about the details of this process, internet searches of
centripetal and centrifugal forces will lead you to further
explanations.

Second, the life part. It
seems that the vast majority of people turn to meditation and
contemplation, the journey of Self-Realization, out of a sense of having
lived in the external world and finding it lacking something. Often,
people run into painful experiences, which drive them to seek within,
turning away from the world. It can seem that it is the world and the
other people who are causing the suffering, just as it can seem that it
is the centrifugal force that causes the rock to fly away. That's not
really a complete explanation of what leads to the suffering. What is
more true is that the cessation or removal of our connection to
the inner source, who we really are, is the bigger problem, as in
the case of the string and the rock.

As with the
rock and the string,
the cause of the suffering is forgetting
to maintain a constant awareness
of the center of consciousness.

Often, people get the
impression that living a life of meditation and contemplation means not
enjoying life in the external world, as if everybody is supposed to give
up all their belongings and relationships and go live in a cave. It can
seem as if texts and teachers are all saying this, that they should not
have fun in life, that they should become boring people. However, it is
not the world and its attractions that is the problem. Rather, as with the
rock and the string, the cause of the suffering is forgetting to
maintain a constant awareness of the center of consciousness, cutting
ourselves off from the Atman, the Self. When that awareness is cut off,
like the removal cessation or removal of the centripetal force with the
rock and the string, we can easily suffer as we naturally fly off into
the allurements of worldly life.

The solution is simple;
maintain a constant awareness of seeking the highest Reality, the
highest Truth, the direct experience of the Absolute, the center of
consciousness, the Self or Atman. Here, we are not talking about whether
you have or have not yet actually realized that Self. Rather, we are
talking about the fact that the gently constant awareness of seeking it
acts like the string in relation to the rock. That constant awareness
keeps life in the external world in balance. It brings equanimity, peace
of mind, or contentment, which is called santosha in Sanskrit. This
santosha is part of rung two, the niyamas, of the eight rungs of Yoga,
as described in the Yoga Sutras (Yoga Sutras 2.26-2.29,
2.30-2.34, 2.35-2.45).
To keep a sense of contentment, don't remove the string, the connection
with the innermost center of consciousness. Keep a gentle, yet steady
awareness of that innermost source. That awareness is the centripetal
force that keeps the centrifugal force of worldly life in balance.

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This site is devoted to
presenting the ancient Self-Realization path of
the Tradition of the Himalayan masters
in simple, understandable and beneficial ways, while not compromising
quality or depth. The goal of our sadhana or practices is the highest
Joy that comes from the Realization in direct experience of the
center of consciousness, the Self, the Atman or Purusha, which is
one and the same with the Absolute Reality.
This Self-Realization comes through Yoga meditation of the Yoga
Sutras, the contemplative insight of Advaita Vedanta, and the
intense devotion of Samaya Sri Vidya Tantra, the three of which
complement one another like fingers on a hand.
We employ the classical approaches of Raja, Jnana, Karma, and Bhakti
Yoga, as well as Hatha, Kriya, Kundalini, Laya, Mantra, Nada, Siddha,
and Tantra Yoga. Meditation, contemplation, mantra and prayer
finally converge into a unified force directed towards the final
stage, piercing the pearl of wisdom called bindu, leading to the
Absolute.